Along with compositional techniques, lighting is the main resource you have for altering the look and visual feel of your film. By selective lighting, you can concentrate the viewer’s attention on one part of the scene, or divert it from other parts. Lighting needs to be planned, both from an artistic and practical perspective, well in advance.

LIGHTING FOR GENRECertain genres stereotypically use a specific lighting style to generate a specific mood. You can easily reference the b-movie or Film Noir genres by using heavy shadows cast from oblique angles (low key), or a Hollywood musical with bright, even lighting (high key).Most contemporary films use a variety of lighting styles to vary the mood depending on the particular scene.

TECHNICAL BIT: LIGHT COLOURDifferent light sources have different colours and differences in the colour of the light source can affect your camera even if your eye isn't aware of them. Tungsten light tends to look yellowish, while fluorescent tubes typically cause a green cast. Unless you are using manual white balance, your camera will try to compensate for these automatically.The colour temperature of the light, which is measured in degrees Kelvin, expresses this variation. Standard daylight is 5600 degrees k, considerably bluer than most artificial lights. The 3D simulation below illustrates the difference between what you see and what a camera sees when looking into a normal room with mixed colour temperatures.

WHITE BALANCE Your camera may have settings for tungsten light (denoted by a bulb icon) and daylight (a sun icon). If there are different colours of light (different light temperatures) in the same shot (e.g. tungsten + daylight) your camera will struggle to handle both of them automatically. If you have to work in conditions with mixed light sources, (you will), you will need to override the automatic white balance.You can set the white balance manually by holding a piece of white paper in the same position as your subject, illuminated by the existing lights in your scene. Zoom in until the camera can see only the white paper and nothing else. The white paper is, of course, reflecting multiple light sources with different colour temperatures. However, as you set the white balance now, you are instructing the camera that what it is seeing is a solid white colour. The camera will make internal adjustments to suit your specific circumstances. As you zoom back out, the camera will no longer be displaying any of the different colour casts.

REFLECTORS You can control light without using additional lamps by using reflectors to alter how your video looks. Reflected light is softer (more diffuse) than direct light, particularly if the reflecting surface is slightly textured. It will reduce harsh shadows from a direct light source. You can use sheets of polystyrene from a DIY store to make very adaptable and lightweight reflectors. These will create a soft fill light (due to the textured surface which scatters the reflected light in different directions). Soft light is more flattering as it flattens imperfections in skin, and generally smooths out a surface. A smooth reflective surface (e.g. tin foil glued to a sheet of cardboard) creates a harder, more focused reflection.

LIGHTS The PAR can is perhaps the most widely used light for concerts and touring productions. PAR lamps are differentiated according to their diameter, which is measured in eighths of an inch. Therefore, a PAR64 is eight inches in diameter (64/8 = 8) and a PAR38 has a diameter of four and three-quarter inches (38/8 = 4.75). PAR lamps are available in an assortment of wattages and beam spreads as well. For example, a PAR56 lamp may be purchased at 300 or 500 watts, and each wattage is available in Narrow Spot, Medium Flood or Wide Flood.The PAR can is the lamp housing that safely holds the lamp and any colour media (gel) in place. The can also has a mounting bracket that allows it to be bolted to a light bar.LEDs are gradually replacing PAR cans as they are more efficient regarding robustness & running costs.

GELS A colour gel is a transparent, coloured material that is used in Videography to colour light and/or for colour correction. Modern gels are thin sheets of polycarbonate or polyester, placed in front of a lighting fixture in the path of the beam.

POSITIONING1 BacklightPositioned behind and to the side of the subject, this direct light separates the subject from the background by creating a rim effect around the subject.

2 KeyCommonly positioned to one side of the camera, this strong light provides the main illumination to the subject. If it were used alone, it would cast strong shadows on one side of the faces in view.

3 FillLess bright than the key (or diffused or reflected), this light partially fills the shaded side of the subject, balancing the key light.

When lighting something or someone, you should try to imitate light as you might envision it would fall naturally in the same setting.Try to add light in order to enhance an illusion of depth, remembering that you are using a two-dimensional video format. This is done through modelling of the light on the subject, as demonstrated below.

Lighting is so, so important! At a basic level, you need to give your camera enough light to see. At its most complex, it can affect the viewer’s mood to a very great extent.